Smith prevails in thriller

Leroy Brown, Gleaner Writer

As was the case when No. 1 seed Tsetsi Davis was knocked out of the Wray and Nephew Contender series by Devon Moncrieffe a week ago, tears were shed by loyal supporters of the No. 2-rated boxer Sakima Mullings, who was eliminated on Wednesday night by No. 3 seed Rikardo Smith, in the second semi-final at the Chinese Benevolent Association auditorium.

Smith gained a unanimous victory with judge Clifford Brown scoring it 77-75, Luke Irons 78-74 and Keith Brown 77-75.

It was a night of thrilling toe-to-toe action that had spectators on their feet most of the time, and after giving the best performance of his short professional career, Smith, who is now 5-1, will meet Moncrieffe in the final on April 27.

promises to be a thriller

That fight also promises to be a thriller, and will be a fitting end to a series that has breathed new life into professional boxing in Jamaica, and has made the Jamaica Boxing Board of Control, promoters MJK Productions and sponsors J. Wray and Nephew, Claro, Foska Oats and TVJ very happy.

The value of using the right tactics was shown by Smith, whose camp worked out a winning strategy for him that he implemented brilliantly. His victory was built around a very tight defence, which allowed him to move into an attacking groove strategically, and his ability to keep the action mostly in the centre of the ring where he was dominant paid rich dividends.

Mullings, whose camp had anointed him the champion from the start of the competition, came out aggressively, and slick jabbing to the head and body gave him the early edge, as Smith tried to work out how he would go about the task of taming the dragon. Mullings won that round.

Smith came out in a no-nonsense mood in the second and took the battle to Mullings, who responded with his own counter-attack. Smith, however, drew gasps of surprise from the crowd when he shook his opponent with some solid body shots, and the usually dominant Mullings suddenly looked vulnerable. Smith won this round.

The third round was a continuation of the second, as both men acted as if they wanted to go back to their dressing rooms in a hurry. It was attack and counter-attack, and Smith was able to stay away from the ropes, despite the efforts of Mullings to keep him there. Superior body punching gave Mullings the edge in this round, however.

The next two rounds saw Smith, a six-footer, using his longer reach to good advantage, and after getting his jabs going he would stay close to his opponent for short bursts of activity that paid rich dividends. He won both rounds, and at the end of the fifth Mullings struggled back to his corner on legs that must have felt as if they were encased in cement.

championship grit

He was not out of the picture yet, however, and showing true championship grit, he rallied to win the sixth, with a good close-range attack. That was to be his swansong, however, as Smith took charge in the seventh and eight rounds, and the usually vociferous Mullings camp was deathly silent. For him, the dream of being the Contender had been shattered. For Smith, it was rebirth, and the agony of four losses to his opponent, as an amateur, had been emphatically erased.

In the two entertaining amateur bouts on the card, lightweight Kestna Davis from Bruising Gym scored a good victory over Ricardo Carter from the G.C. Foster Gym. Catoney Robinson from the Stanley Couch Gym lost by way of a controversial decision to Bruising Gym's Michael Gardener.